Paragon of the Shattered Anvil
Paragon of the Shattered Anvil was a Consul and founding member of the League of Nine. He ruled the city-state of Urheimat before the foundation of the League. Paragon was a builder first and foremost. He considered his crowning achievements to be the construction of the Bright Causeway and Colossus of Urheimat. Appearance and Personality Paragon of the Shattered Anvil had the most bizarre appearance of any of the League Consuls. A hulking giant, he stood nearly eight feel tall. His features were always kept indistinct beneath shapeless garments, his face hidden by a golden hood and veil, his hands gloved. A great amount of hissing and clicking accompanied his movements, and many experts noted that his gait made the sound of too many footfalls, as if he had more than two legs. Paragon was also noted to have very poor depth perception. Paragon's official statement on the strangeness of his appearance was that he was the offspring of a concubine and an inbred king. He was born an albino, complicated with gigantism. His numerous physical quirks are the result of poor health stemming from his oversized frame and photosensitivity; he claimed to be almost completely blind in one eye as a result, resulting in poor depth perception and exacerbating the clumsiness of his unusual size. Paragon's personality was generally upbeat and pragmatic. He was an engineer first and foremost, and designed the Bright Causeway, Solar Execrator, steam engine, and Colossus of Urheimat, among many other artifacts. Paragon was an outspoken atheist, arguably the most prominent of his time. It was by his insistence that the League constitution forbids individuals from simultaneously holding a position in the Church of Baruc and secular government. He was an optimistic nihilist, rejecting the narrative of the Codex Baruc and advocating that the meaning of life was determined by each individual rather than an all-purpose divine plan. Portfolio When Paragon used magic, he was primarily an aphorationist and evoker. Unlike the other Consuls, he rarely used magic in isolation, preferring to use it to cover gaps in mundane technology. He was the foremost technologist in Ethos, and had led Urheimat into an industrial revolution before his death. Paragon's true strength was in the creation of magical artifacts. The Bright Causeway and Colossus of Urheimat were his best-known creations, but he created hundreds of artifacts during his life. Known History Paragon of the Shattered Anvil's name is first mentioned in an Urheimat census from 1580. The wizard had taken up residence in the city at some point in the previous decade, already an adult with an established portfolio of powers. He lived and worked in Urheimat until the Revolution of 1621, when the citizenry of Urheimat put the royal line to guillotine. Paragon was one of several candidates nominated to lead the city, and helped create its ruling legislature. History notes that Paragon appeared publicly only rarely prior to this time, and he was described as even larger and bulkier than his appearance during the War of Nine. While Paragon did not hold the position of First Minister constantly during the years from 1621 to 1659, he won each election he deigned to run for. In 1661, Paragon suspended the Legislature; it would not resume session until after his death. Paragon is known to have been the driving force behind the League of Nine. As the Circle of Solace continued to gain political influence in the East, it was his dream to establish a state that did not submit itself to the Circle. The League of Nine was born from this effort. Place within the League Paragon of the Shattered Anvil was the chief logistics officer of the League until the time of his death. The Bright Causeway was his brainchild, initially to counter the advantage that the Astral Gate network gave the Alliance. The factories of Urheimat were also able to produce weapons and other supplies faster than any other city on Ethos. Orichalcum Survival In 1668, Paragon survived a shot through the head with Orichalcum shot. The shot tore his veil, demonstrating a hit, but provoked no response besides anger. He made a point of letting one of the assassins escape to spread the word of his survival. It was believed for several years among the Alliance that Paragon had found a way to overcome orichalcum's ability to pierce the Rites of Fortification. Theory of Two Anvils Prior to appearing on Urheimat's 1580 census, there is no record of a wizard called Paragon of the Shattered Anvil. However, there is an account of an established wizard called Paragon of the Sacred Anvil having lived in the area of Urheimat since the mid-1200s. Sacred Anvil was last known to be participating in a wizards' duel with a rival, Diamond Heart of the Wasteland, sometime around 1572. The duel reportedly killed both wizards. It is theorized that Shattered Anvil's appearance in the span of time between Sacred Anvil's death and Shattered Anvil's appearance on the 1580 census may mean that they are the same man. The theory goes on to state that it is possible that Sacred Anvil had not created a body map before his ill-fated duel. His powers were sufficient to keep him alive, but he lost almost his entire body mass and had no way to reconstruct it organically. His strange appearance was because his physical body was actually an elaborate prosthetic constructed after his near death. If Paragon had only one functional eye, this would explain his lack of depth perception, and the "head" of his prosthetic body containing no actual flesh would explain his survival of the orichalcum shot. Paragon's government officially dismissed the so-called "Theory of Two Anvils," stating that Sacred Anvil was Shattered Anvil's mentor, and the younger wizard changed his name after his mentor's death. The officially stated reason for his unusual appearance was that Paragon was an albino, making his skin and eyes extremely sensitive to sunlight.